


Now my Friends are Dead & Gone

by Iamprongsie



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: (kinda), Angst, Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff, M/M, Multi, O shit here comes the Angst train, Someone hug Obi-Wan, fic that got away from the author and made them cry, it's just pure angst ok, well except for the ship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-22
Updated: 2018-07-22
Packaged: 2019-06-14 10:28:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15386790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iamprongsie/pseuds/Iamprongsie
Summary: Obi-Wan goes back to Padme's apartment on Coruscant after the events of Revenge of the Sith, and confronts his past.





	Now my Friends are Dead & Gone

**Author's Note:**

> This is pure angst, get your tissues ready.  
> (there's also a playlist - https://open.spotify.com/user/emopo11/playlist/5bWXsiYvF29Jm48cvqcKP5?si=07_2eWZmS_i8X9ogT1rmFg )

Obi-Wan let himself into the silent apartment and nearly collapsed. His mind was filled with memories of his time here, and he stumbled to sit down on the couch in Padme’s receiving room. The Force sang a dirge around him as he relived the final meeting of the Delegation of 2000, and as he moved upstairs to the private section of her apartment, his breath caught. 

_He was walking up the stairs gingerly, trying not to disturb his arm sling, his mind full of the latest battle. His leg was stiff, he observed absentmindedly. Probably the old injury from Port Rain flaring up again. Padme saw him at the top of the stairs and rushed to meet him, mindful of his injury. She kissed him and he kissed back, pouring all his happiness and joy at seeing her through his shields in the hopes that she would feel it. When they came up for air, she spoke._

_“What happened to your arm? Are you alright?” She held onto his arms and looked up at him, her lovely brown eyes filled with concern._

_“I’m fine, Padme. I broke my arm badly on my last deployment, and since Kix and the 501st weren’t with us my arm didn’t get set properly until we got back to Coruscant. The healers decided that Force Healing it would cause it to become permanently damaged so it’s in bacta and a cast for now. Vokara says it will be a few days, and then we can try Force Healing again.”_

_Padme nodded and led him out of the doorway and onto her couch. “How long are you here for?”_

_“I’m here until my arm heals, on paperwork. Anakin sends his love, as well.” Obi-Wan replied._

_“He’s due back here soon, isn’t he?”_

_“I think he is, but it’s likely that he got himself and Ahsoka into trouble again and they won’t be back for a few more days.” Obi-Wan smiled at the thought of their husband and his padawan, and flopped backwards onto the couch._

_Padme laughed gently, lay down next to him, and took his good hand. “I miss him.”_

_Obi-Wan kissed her wedding band, and closed his eyes. “I miss him too.”_

Suddenly the scene changed to the three of them, sitting on the floor and mixing drinks. 

_The atmosphere of the room was heady and thick, the smell of alcohol and various other beverages mixing with the warm temperature. Midsummer night on Coruscant is always hot and humid, and this year it’s especially so._

_“Y’know, this reminds me of Tatooine. Right before a storm, when the heat gets unbearable and it feels like everything’s holding their breath. Droids go bonkers then, the moisture affects their circuits.” Anakin rambled on, pouring himself another drink. In an effort to combat the heat, the two men had discarded their shirts and boots, and Padme had taken off her heavy Senate robes._

_“Is that why 3PO was acting strangely this morning?” Padme downs another shot and starts giggling at the memory. The droid had started to speak in complete gibberish (it was most likely some odd language that Anakin had programmed him with but none of them could understand), had put the breakfast dishes in the clothes washer, and made a mess everywhere. R2 hadn’t been any better this morning when Anakin and Ahsoka were coming off the Resolute, where he started beeping wildly the second the boarding ramp was deployed and rolled off it._

_Obi-Wan mixed himself another drink, and leant his head back onto the sofa. “If it doesn’t rain tonight, I’m going to go insane,” he muttered under his breath, craning his head around to look out of the glass doors, which they had opened earlier in the evening to try and get every last shred of whatever cool breeze was wandering around. He hated the humidity and heat of Coruscant, and he usually tried to get assigned to a mission to a nice cool planet on the mid rim, but this year he was stuck. The sunset was muted by heavy clouds, so he turned around and took a grumpy sip of his drink. “Kriffing heat, all we need is some sand and it’ll be Tatooine in here.”_

_Anakin looked horrified. “Don’t you dare bring sand in here! It’s -”_

_“Coarse and rough and irritating, and it gets everywhere!” Padme and Obi-Wan finished the phrase off, and the three of them began to laugh. More drinks were made, and as the midsummer evening dragged on the heat seemed to get more and more oppressive. It still hadn’t rained, and the sky looked heavier and heavier. They had all passed the point of pleasantly tipsy, and were bordering completely blackout drunk. As the last of the sun disappeared below the Coruscant skyline, it finally rained._

_Padme was the first to run out onto the landing pad, ditching her shoes on the way. Anakin and Obi-Wan joined her, and the three of them began to dance and kiss, under the slowly rising moon and the long-awaited rain._

_“I love you I love you I love you,” Obi-Wan muffled his voice in Padme’s hair, and she pulled him up and kissed him long and slow as Anakin kissed his neck, and their feet moved with perfect rhythm in their non-existent melody._

_“I love you, so much.”_

_“Nothing will take you away from me.”_

_“I love you.”_

He moved on from the lounge and into her office, and another memory floated up from the Force, freezing him in place again.

_He was walking into Padme’s office, expecting to find her working late and Anakin lying on the floor, fiddling with something in his prosthetic arm. Instead he found them kissing in the middle of the room, which was always a welcome sight._

_“Couldn’t you wait for me?” His voice alerted his spouses to his presence, and they separated and turned to him. Anakin’s face was smeared with Padme’s lipstick, a very nice shade of red that contrasted nicely with his blonde hair and dark robes. His hair was sticking out in all directions, and Padme’s elegant hairstyle was falling out._

_Anakin grinned smugly at him and walked over, kissing him soundly and smearing the lipstick all over Obi-Wan’s mouth as well. “You were taking so long in the council meeting, and we got bored.”_

_Obi-Wan could hear the love in the other man’s voice, and kissed him again. Then he turned to Padme and smiled. She moved forward, kissed him, and as she pulled away she trailed her finger teasingly down his chest._

_“What do you say we move this to the bedroom?”_

_Anakin’s eyes lit up, and Obi-Wan’s reaction was much the same. The three of them left the office, wrapped in the other’s embraces, happy and warm and giddy on their love._

Obi-Wan was shocked out of his memories by the beeping on his wrist comm. With his vision vaguely misty, he methodically searched Padme’s desk for the datapads he needed, careful not to disturb the dust that was at least ten years thick. Eventually he found them, and as he walked into the kitchen to check the hiding spot under the conservator, another memory came to life in front of his eyes. 

_“Mmmm, morning Obi-Wan,” Anakin stumbles out of the bedroom still half asleep, rubbing his eyes. “What’re you making?”_

_Obi-Wan kissed his husband gently, and pointed him in the direction of the caf pot and the mugs. “I’m doing pancakes, did you want something different?”_

_Anakin looks up from his mug, smiles at him, and shakes his head. The sunrise behind his back turns his blonde hair into molten gold, and Obi-Wan can’t help but stare. This is his life now. He gets to wake up with two of the most beautiful people in the world, gets to cook them breakfast and laugh and be happy with them. The only dark clouds that hang over them are the War, and the Jedi. “That’s great, I like your pancakes.”_

_Obi-Wan smiles, flips a pancake, and adds some berries to the mix on the bench next to him. The two of them stand in the kitchen in a warm silence for a while, until Padme wanders out of the bedroom and hoists herself onto the counter._

_“Can you two stay for a while? I don’t have to go into the Senate until the late afternoon, maybe we could go on a date?” She accepts the mug of caf that Anakin hands her with a kiss, and starts devouring the plate of berry pancakes that Obi-Wan places on her lap. “Mmm, these are nice! Who knew the Negotiator was such an excellent cook?”_

_Anakin snorts into his mug, and Obi-Wan kisses her as their husband continues to laugh._

_“Master Qui-Gon only taught him how to make three things. Pancakes, tea, and toast. If he tries anything else, it burns. We got stuck on some outer rim planet once and I was injured so I couldn’t cook, and he burnt the water for our rations!”_

_Padme and Obi-Wan start laughing, and as he remembers that mission, he also remembers something very annoying._

_“Speaking of that date we were promised; can we take a raincheck until tomorrow? I’m expected back at the Temple, and I think the council want to speak to you about something.” He directs the last sentence at Anakin, and Padme sips her caf and looks thoughtful. Anakin groans loudly at the thought of the council, and the three of them start giggling like younglings again._

_Suddenly Padme rises and goes into her office. The two men hear her rummaging through her desk drawers, before noticing the datapad on the small table in front of the lounge. She rushes out and checks the calendar. Grinning, she dances into the kitchen, kisses both of them, and speaks._

_“Date night, tomorrow. We can go to Dexter's or something, or 79’s, if Rex can get us in.” She looks incredibly happy, and her husbands immediately agree with the idea. The morning ends with them all laying on the couch, talking animatedly about anything and everything, planning their future after the war. Anakin and Obi-Wan talk about leaving the Jedi, starting a family with Padme. Padme dreams of having children, little versions of her and her husbands who she can teach and grow with. They all dream of the end of the war, an end to the uncertainty that hangs over their heads with each passing day. Eventually the morning is over, and as the three of them leave the apartment together, Obi-Wan feels like he never wants this moment to end._

He stifles a sob as he moves out of the kitchen, and hesitates before heading into the bedroom. There’s so many memories there, happy and sad. He doesn’t know if he can stand it, but he needs to find their wedding rings. As well as getting the documents from the first Delegation of 2000, and the birth of the Rebel Alliance, he’s on a personal mission to take any traces of their relationship with him when he goes back to Tatooine. He trips over the carpet join at the doorway, and as he tries to right himself another memory takes over.

_He stumbles into the bedroom and dumps the stolen armour next to the doorway. Padme and Anakin are sleeping quietly, tangled up in each other. He feels like he can’t join them tonight, can’t be with them ever again. He can’t have another person taken away from him because he cared too much. Loved too much. The memory of Satine’s death is fresh in his mind, her shocked face as she was run through with the darksaber, her final words to him as she breathed her last._

_**“Remember, my dear Obi-Wan, I’ve loved you always. I always will.”**_

_Each time he closes his eyes he remembers another detail of that mission. The light streaming through the windows of the throne room, Oppress’ smirk, Maul’s full out grin. Satine’s face as Maul chokes her. The crushing sadness and anger he felt when she was killed._

_Suddenly the dark bedroom feels too small and claustrophobic, and he makes his way into the bathroom and turns the lights on. This doesn’t work either, it feels like the cell he rescued Satine from. Something wet drops into his beard, and he barely notices he’s crying before he’s bent over the sink, sobbing his heart out._

_He needs to leave them, he can’t have their blood on his hands as surely as Satine’s and Qui-Gon’s is. He can’t see them killed by Maul, shock on their faces and charred holes where their hearts used to be. Now he knows why the Jedi forbid attachments, why they work so hard to ignore their feelings. Feelings cause pain. Pain causes suffering, suffering leads to hate, and hate leads to the Dark. He can’t go down that path, can’t let the people he loves die, can’t keep going like this. Something must break, and it might just be him._

_He barely notices the door opening and his spouses walking up to him, their faces lined with concern. His bond with Anakin is tingling, his pain and anger leaking through his complex shields. Padme takes one look at him and drags him to sit on their bed, still sobbing. The lights are on, which makes him feel better, but he’s so_ _**tired.** _ _He hasn’t slept in at least three days, excluding the hyperspace trips, and it’s beginning to show._

_Padme is curled around him, holding him close, and Anakin is pacing around the room and tentatively poking their bond, trying to get through some of his smaller shields. He’s almost too exhausted to keep them up, but he also doesn’t want him to see everything._

_It’s a while before he’s able to speak again, but when he is, he still can’t put what it is into words. He has to talk about it though, otherwise it will fester in him and he’ll Fall and he can’t be here they’re in danger he has to leave them they’re not safe Maul will come for them just like everyone else he loved. He’s on the brink of a panic attack, and manages to bring himself down from it while Padme rubs his back and Anakin holds his hand. He can do this. He has to do this. Otherwise he’ll just internalise it and no he can’t go there again. One breath at a time. One word at a time, start at the beginning and get to the end. Then he can sleep._

_“Maul took over Mandalore. The-the Council decided that they couldn’t help, so I left without their permission.” He can feel Anakin’s surprise at him flippantly disregarding the council through their bond, but he ignores it. “I had to steal some armour, but I made my way into the prison complex, and got Satine out. We went back to the ship, but we were shot down by Maul. He took us prisoner, and took us to the throne room.” His voice catches again, but he swallows back the sob and continues. “He was choking her, dragging her around by the throat. He went through my mind, tried to tempt me to the Dark.” He closes his eyes, but all he sees is Satine struggling for air in front of him, Maul’s hand in the air behind her. He almost can’t bring himself to say the next part, and it looks like Padme and Anakin are starting to piece together the rest. “Maul had the darksaber, he must’ve stolen it from Vizsla. Maul stabbed her.” He’s about to break down again he can’t do this he has to go. “She died in my arms. She’s gone, and it’s my fault, he tried to break me and he used Satine.” He’s sobbing again, and his spouses are hugging him and crying as well. They all knew Satine, all knew her fire and spirit and how she’d fight for her beliefs. “He might come for you next, I can’t be here. I can’t let this happen to you as well, I can’t see the two people I love most killed by him.”_

_At this, his shields completely break as he continues to break down, as he lets go for the first time in years._

_“I’m not leaving.” Anakin’s voice startles him out of his mind, and he raises his head to meet his husband’s eyes._

_“He’ll kill you.” Obi-Wan can’t believe this, but he should have expected it. Anakin smiles._

_“I’d like to see him try. Besides, he thinks he’s broken you enough, he won’t come for us.”_

_Obi-Wan nearly laughs at this, the first statement is true. The second one isn’t._

_Padme draws in a deep breath, and moves to face him._

_“I’m not leaving either. And we’re not letting you leave. We know our time is limited, we may as well spend it together. Sooner or later there’s going to be another attack on the Senate, and I might get caught in the fight. There might be a failed mission, a ship malfunction, anything, and you two could be gone. I say we enjoy ourselves while we can, and think about Maul later. She uses her Politician’s voice, and Obi-Wan finds himself nodding along with her. They could all die at any moment, so they might as well live as long as they can while they still have time. Anakin is nodding as well, and he turns and kisses Obi-Wan gently._

_“I won’t let him near us. I promise it.” Anakin has a determined set to eyes, and as the three of them remember and mourn their friend, the sun rises above the skyline. Sleep will come later, and Obi-Wan knows that he’ll wake up with his lovers long after the sun has risen, in peace and calmness and love until they all have to go back to their jobs. For now, he’s content to reminisce about Satine and remember happier times._

When the force decides to release him from his memories, he’s sprawled out on the floor in front of the bed. The dusty carpet releases a cloud of debris straight into his nose, and while he’s sneezing he notices that the room has been ransacked. Two of the rings are gone, the ones that belonged to Anakin and Padme. This seems like the ultimate slap in the face from Vader, a last reminder that he was never really a part of the relationship, just someone they brought in when they got bored. The lone ring stares at him from the stand, and as he walks to grab it he falls into another memory. 

_They’re exhausted and tired after landing half a Separatist ship somewhat safely on Coruscant, and even though he desperately wants to see Padme, the last thing Obi-Wan wants to deal with is a bunch of Politicians. He’s lost in thought, stumbling along with Anakin as they make their way off the transport when Anakin speaks._

_“Are you coming, darling?” Obi-Wan quickly looks around to make sure that they’re out of earshot; there could be serious repercussions if anyone else heard it._

_“Oh no. I’m not brave enough for politics. I have to report to the council. Besides, someone needs to be the poster boy.” He replies, shooting his husband a quick smile. He sends a vague suggestion that Anakin will be able to see Padme through their bond._

_Anakin looks almost affronted, until he hears the unspoken words and smiles. “Still, this whole operation was your idea. You planned it. You led the rescue operation. You have to be the one to take the bows this time.” He sends a comment back through their bond, something along the lines of ‘Padme misses you’._

_Obi-Wan sighs, tells Anakin that he misses her too, and replies. “Sorry, dearest. Let us not forget that you rescued me from the Buzz Droids, and you killed Count Dooku. And you rescued the Chancellor, carrying me unconscious on your back, and you managed to land that bucket of bolts safely… well, somewhat safely.”_

_Anakin takes the joke immediately, his eyes flashing with laughter as the politicians draw ever nearer. “All because of your training, Obi-Wan. You deserve the speeches of your greatness. And we haven’t seen Padme in months.”_

_Obi-Wan almost groans at the thought of all those endless speeches, but cheers up at the thought of his wife. Anakin’s right, the Siege and Cato Neimoidia and other missions have kept the two of them away from their wife for far too long._

_“.... The endless speeches…. Darling, let’s be fair. Today, you are the hero and you deserve your glorious day with the politicians.”_

_“All right. But you owe me. And not for saving your skin for the tenth time either! Are you coming home tonight?” Anakin’s playful expression seems to fade away at the last sentence, anxiety taking over his handsome features._

_“I’ll be there,” He promises, smiling up at his husband before walking off to join Mace. As he walks away, he yells over his shoulder, “And that’s the ninth time! That business on Cato Neimoidia doesn’t count!” and he can feel Anakin’s smile lighting up their bond._

_He barely manages to sit through the council meeting, and he’s soon sneaking out of the Temple like a Senior Padawan and heading off to Padme’s apartment. When he arrives, Anakin and Padme are cuddling on the couch, with a holoflix playing in front of them. When they hear the door click shut, Anakin pauses the holo and Padme starts to twist her sleeve between her fingers. Obi-Wan hangs his robe on the coat rack by the door, kisses both of them, and sits next to Padme in the corner of the sofa. The tension in the room is almost thick enough that he can cut it with his lightsaber, with a thread of happiness in the Force. He doesn’t think anyone’s going to speak in the next few minutes, so he says something._

_“Is everything alright?_

_Padme turns to him, shock and happiness and anxiety in her eyes, and says the two words that he never thought he’d hear._

_“I’m pregnant.”_

_The Force is full of Light and he’s so happy he can barely speak and he can feel Anakin’s happiness and anxiety and he feels like his heart will burst._

_Padme is looking up at him concernedly, taking his silence as something bad. Then she sees the massive smile across his face, and smiles back._

_“How long have you known?” He’s almost sure he can feel two small signatures in the Force, ones that weren’t there a second ago._

_“Nearly eight months. I’m due in about a month, as well.” Anakin looks vaguely terrified at the prospect, and Obi-Wan feels the same. “I want to have our baby back home on Naboo. We could go to the lake country where no one would know, where we could be safe. I could go early and fix up the baby’s room. There’s a perfect spot, it’s right near the gardens.” The two men nod agreement, knowing that further plans can wait until morning._

_Obi-Wan’s mind is still reeling, but he’s still coherent enough to speak, “It’s twins.”_

_Anakin looks confused for a second, and he closes his eyes for a second. Padme is looking even happier, if that were possible, and she grabs him close for a quick kiss before turning to Anakin. He’s looking incredibly happy as well, and the three of them stay on the couch, trading kisses and smiles and plans for the future while barely paying attention to the holoflix they start again. Obi-Wan concentrates on looking for the two small stars in the Force, feeling his children grow. They’re happy, they’re a family, they’re safe. He can’t help but feel that something awful is on the horizon, but he figures that it’s just the War and the Sith. He can deal with this tomorrow._

_It’s late at night, and Obi-Wan wakes to a disturbance in the Force. The bed is empty, the other two occupants have disappeared somewhere. He leaves the nice warm bed and goes in search of them, taking the blankets with him._

_He finds Anakin standing at the balcony, and Padme comforting him._

_“Are you alright?” Obi-Wan seems almost scared to ask, remembering what had happened the last time Anakin had had nightmares. He still felt absolutely terrible that he hadn’t taken Anakin’s concerns seriously and gone back to Tatooine. Maybe Shmi would still be alive, maybe things would be different._

_Anakin shrugs. “I had a nightmare. Padme was dying, she was on a medical table. I think she’s going to die when she has the babies.” His normally expressive voice was monotone and clipped, and Obi-Wan could feel terror and anger through their bond. Padme placed a protective hand on her stomach, and her face was full of fear._

_Obi-Wan moves forward and embraces both of them, Anakin’s second-hand anxiety rubbing off on him. He doesn’t know why Anakin feels so much more nervous about this, why he’s suddenly thinking of this. They’re in the Core, they have cutting edge medical care at their disposal, this isn’t the Outer Rim. Then it hits him. Anakin grew up on Tatooine, in a culture where medical help was whatever bacta and bandages were available, with a quick prayer to their gods. Now he understands why his husband is feeling this way, and he projects soothing calm at him before speaking._

_“Anakin, people don’t die in childbirth here anymore. We have hospitals, technology. Padme will be alright.” He can feel Anakin’s anxiety alleviate the slightest bit as he speaks, and relief surges through their bond._

_“It was just a dream, darling. How about we go back to bed?” Padme speaks softly, her hand on Anakin’s wrist. He nods, and the three of them go back to bed, curled in each other’s embraces. As he’s dropping into sleep, Obi-Wan hears Anakin whisper something into the darkness._

_“I won’t let this dream become real.”_

He knows what memory will come next. He knows he’ll have to relive the terrible feeling of telling his wife that their husband has Fallen, that he attacked the Temple. As he picks up his wedding ring, the only one left, and moves out of the bedroom to the landing pad on Padme’s balcony, he braces himself. 

_Padme rushes up to him the second he gets out of his fighter, hugging him close and checking him over for injuries. “Something’s wrong with Anakin,” she says, close to tears._

_He doesn’t know what to say._

_“He said the Jedi tried to overthrow the republic, that Master Windu tried to assassinate the Emperor! This can’t be true.”_

_He has to say something. “He is in grave danger.” His voice doesn’t sound like his own, too rough and ragged to be his._

_Padme looks shocked. “From the Sith?”  
He shakes his head. “From himself. Padme, he’s Fallen.”_

_Padme reels back and shakes her head. “I don’t believe you… I can’t”_

_“I can’t believe it either.” Suddenly his bond with Anakin snaps. All he can feel for a few seconds is unimaginable pain and anger and hurt, and the termination of years of friendship and happiness. When he can breathe again, Padme is looking more concerned than ever. Behind her, smoke still blooms from the Jedi Temple, three days after the flames were lit. “I must find him.”_

_Padme looks up at him in shock, realising what he means. “You’ve been ordered to kill him, haven’t you?”_

_Obi-Wan can barely bring himself to look his wife in the eyes, knowing that he can’t kill Anakin, he can’t let his husband die by his hand. “I can’t kill him.”_

He still can’t face himself, what he did on Mustafar, why he did it. He doesn’t need the Force to bring him these next memories, he relives them each night. They’re on Mustafar, fighting to kill. Padme is dying, her signature draining away. Anakin- no. Vader is bearing down on him, he’s fighting back. Phantom hands are around his throat. Padme is dying. He has the high ground, warns his former apprentice and husband not to try it. He’d always been cocky, too sure of his abilities. He flips, and Obi-Wan only means to defend himself but his lightsaber cuts through Vader’s flesh and he didn’t mean to hurt him they were brothers in arms they were lovers they were in love and Obi-Wan just let him burn. I hate you I hate you I hate you rings in his ears, I loved you I loved you I love you please come back. Padme is dying and he gets her back onto the ship with the help of the droids, takes her to Polis Massa. Yoda and Bail are there, Padme is dying, the twins are alright. Luke and Leia. A new hope, in the blanket of darkness that has snuffed out the Republic’s light. 

As he’s walking around the couch one more time, his hands brush along the back of it. He feels a small bump in the fabric, a hole where something could be hidden. Obi-Wan takes the device hidden in the couch out, and turns it on. It’s a holo of the three of them, standing together and smiling. It looks like a candid shot, possibly one that R2 took when he was in the apartment. Padme stands tall and proud in her Senate robes with Anakin and Obi-Wan, both dressed in the armour they favoured at the start of the war. There’s carbon scoring along Anakin’s breastplate, and all up Obi-Wan’s vambraces, clearly showing through the blue tint of the holo. They were happy then, dreams and baggage and issues alike. 

Suddenly the image changes. Padme is transparent with flowers in her hair. Anakin is encased in a metal suit, an unwieldy helmet covering his face with a metallic sneer. And Obi-Wan? He looks just as he does in the present moment. His face is prematurely lined and tanned, his copper hair streaked through with large amounts of grey. There’s a permanent frown on his face, a dullness in his eyes. It’s too much to look at, and as he watches the image, Padme fades from view and Vader walks away, leaving him alone. 

**Fin**


End file.
